Konrad Hornschuch AG opt for Fujitsu's all in one ESPRIMO PC's

"For me, all-in-one PCs are the future for office workstations. We couldn’t be happier with the performance, handling and flexible working position of the ESPRIMO X913. Its looks are pretty impressive too!"

The customer

Under its d-c-fix® brand, Hornschuch manufactures and retails designer and functional synthetic film coverings for consumers. Under its industrial brand skai®, the company manufactures synthetic film coverings and coated substrates for the furniture, automotive and construction industries. Its products include premium quality synthetic film coverings and veneers for kitchen and bathroom furniture, high-tech upholstery material and special synthetics for vehicle interiors as well as innovative film coverings and veneers for door, window and shop window profiles.

The company currently has 1,000 employees and an annual turnover of €220 million. The Hornschuch Group, which is based in Weißbach, Germany, is the world leader in designer surface coverings and veneers using synthetic film and artificial leather. The Group has three production businesses, Hornschuch Stolzenau GmbH, kek-Kaschierungen GmbH and O’Sullivan Films Inc., US, in addition to five European sales subsidiaries, as well as representative offices in over 80 countries worldwide.

The challenge

Having welcomed more than 200 new employees to the company over the past three years, Konrad Hornschuch AG needed to significantly increase the amount of available IT workstations. It also wanted to replace 300 of its existing PCs with new clients. “We were on the lookout for the best workstation PC for us as well as a service provider who would be able to replace our existing machines quickly and efficiently,” explains Herbert Binus, Head of Information Management, Finance & Administration at Konrad Hornschuch AG. “It was important to us that the project be completed within a reasonable time frame and with minimum downtime of the PCs.”

The solution

After thorough tests involving traditional desktop PCs with separate monitors, Konrad Hornschuch AG eventually opted for the Fujitsu all-in-one PC. There are now a total of 450 ESPRIMO X913 PCs with integrated 23-inch touch displays in use at the Weißbach head office. Software installation, rollout and replacement of the old PCs were the responsibility of Fujitsu SELECT Expert Partner, Bechtle.

The benefit

Lower energy consumption, even in peak periods, thanks to its integrated power supply which offers energy efficiency of 90 percent

The new Fujitsu clients are now in place throughout all the offices at Konrad Hornschuch AG. Except for the product developers and industrial workstations, which require special computers, the ESPRIMO X913 is now the standard PC for all the office employees, including marketing, sales and accounts staff. To get this far, however, the all-in-one PC had to prove its credentials against the competition: “We had a long list of performance requirements,” Binus explains, “and the Fujitsu PCs came out on top in every respect. We were pleasantly surprised at the results of the comparison test. The ESPRIMO X satisfied our every demand.”

Equipped with the latest Intel Core processors and an integrated power supply that offers energy efficiency of up to 90 percent, the ESPRIMO X is powerful, future-proof and economical at the same time. And that’s not all. Its innovative design was another plus point for the IT Manager: “The all-in-one PC looks great too.” Which explains why the Fujitsu PCs are not only situated in the offices. “We also decided to install the ESPRIMO X PCs in our meeting rooms, so they are used wherever we give presentations. They certainly make an impression,” says Binus.

The employees at Weißbach head office all agree. The new PCs are proving very popular, especially the excellent display quality of the flicker-free 23-inch monitor. According to Binus; “The PCs cater to each employee individually. And the absence of cables makes everything seem calmer somehow, which automatically brings more order to the workstation.”

This fact also benefited the rollout, which was managed much more efficiently with the ESPRIMO X. The various renovations and extensions that have taken place at the Hornschuch head office over its 115 year history mean that there are relatively long distances to travel to get from one part of the building to another. An efficient rollout process was therefore particularly important. “We found a highly competent service provider for this task in Bechtle AG,” adds Herbert Binus in praise of the Fujitsu SELECT Expert Partner from neighboring Neckarsulm.

In addition to installing all the required software for the 450 ESPRIMO X PCs, Bechtle was also responsible for setting them up on site and taking away the old PCs.

As the all-in-one PCs require fewer cables, they were quicker to install than traditional desktop PCs, which saved time and costs for the rollout (with similar savings to be expected in the event of their future replacement). Bechtle completed the removal of the 300 legacy PCs and the installation of the 450 new ESPRIMO X PCs in just 14 days. “The replacement process was quick, smooth and stress free for all concerned,” comments Binus. “The disruption for employees was minimal, lasting only a matter of minutes in each case, which was very impressive.”

Conclusion

Following the installation of the innovative all-in-one ESPRIMO X913 PCs throughout the Konrad Hornschuch AG offices, the company is perfectly equipped to benefit from the very latest applications. The conclusion of the Head of Information Management at Konrad Hornschuch AG is equally positive:

“Although all-in-one PCs were slightly more expensive than traditional PCs plus TFT monitors, we opted for the ESPRIMO X from Fujitsu because of its many benefits, including straightforward replacement, better handling in the event of failure and better performance. The employees are now benefiting from the high quality and flexible working position of this slim-line PC. Thanks to this project, the future has already arrived at Hornschuch.”